FRANCE "France, which like the rest of its European partners advocates the universal abolition of capital punishment, notes the execution of Saddam Hussein on Saturday."

ROMANO PRODI Italian prime minister "Italy is against the death penalty and so even in such a dramatic case we still think that the death penalty must not be put into action."

THE VATICAN "A capital punishment is always tragic news, a reason for sadness, even if it deals with a person who was guilty of grave crimes. . .

"The killing of the guilty party is not the way to reconstruct justice and reconcile society. On the contrary, there is a risk that it will feed a spirit of vendetta and sow new violence."

GEORGE GALLOWAY Anti-war British MP "He has been killed, but I believe he will be more dangerous to the forces of the occupiers and their allies after his death than when he was alive."

LIBYA State media describes Saddam as a "prisoner of war" and declares three days of national mourning.